NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
Audit Query AQ15-003: International Autos, Inc. / Mini Recall
- Closed
NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation opened Audit Query AQ15-003 on August 18, 2015 and closed it on August 23, 2016. NHTSA's investigations file lists the 2014–2015 Mini Cooper for it.
Updated daily from NHTSA's investigations file
Key facts
- NHTSA number
- AQ15-003 (also written AQ15003)
- Investigation type
- Audit Query An administrative investigation into compliance with federal vehicle safety requirements, such as reporting Early Warning data on time or carrying out a recall.
- Status
- Closed August 23, 2016
- Opened
- Closed
- Vehicle or equipment manufacturer
- BMW of North America, LLC
- Component
- Equipment — Other — Labels
- Vehicles and equipment
- 2014–2015 Mini Cooper
A recall appears here only when NHTSA's investigations file links one to the investigation; NHTSA's summary or record can name others.
NHTSA's summary
As NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation wrote it for Audit Query AQ15-003.
The Safety Act requires, among other things, that a manufacturer notify its dealers of defects related to motor vehicle safety and non-compliances with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards and, in turn, that a dealer not sell and deliver a new vehicle subject to a recall unless the recall remedy has been performed (49 U.S.C. ?? 30112(a), 30120(i)).
NHTSA opened AQ15-003 to determine whether International Autos, Inc. of West Allis, Wisconsin complied with the requirements of the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act, 49 U.S.C. Chapter 301 (Safety Act). NHTSA received information that International Autos sold and delivered at least one new model year (MY) 2015 Mini Cooper 2-door hardtop vehicle to a customer without having had all required safety recall repairs performed on that vehicle. NHTSA opened this investigation and then issued an information request (IR) to International Autos on August 20, 2015.
A copy is of this request is in this investigation's file, together with a public copy of International Autos' response.
A careful review of the information supplied confirm that International Autos sold and delivered at least eleven new vehicles with outstanding safety recalls on them. Under a Settlement Agreement dated April 26, 2016, International Autos committed to take concrete actions to improve its processes for verifying that prior to sale and delivery of any new vehicle International Autos has confirmed that the vehicle is not subject to an un-remedied recall. International Autos confirmed that it had engaged in these processes since June 25, 2015.
International Autos also committed that it now also checks for open recalls on every customer vehicle brought in for service, and that it checks for open recalls on every used trade-in vehicle, regardless of make or model, and takes steps to have all used trade-in vehicles repaired prior to retail sale. International Autos admitted to violating the prohibition on sales of new vehicles with open recalls, and agreed to pay civil penalties in the amount of $40,000.
This Audit Query is closed.
Vehicles and equipment listed for this investigation
NHTSA's investigations file lists these vehicles and equipment for Audit Query AQ15-003. A listed model year means only that an investigation names it; it says nothing about any particular vehicle. Model years with a try.vin recall page link to that page's NHTSA investigations section.
Mini
All Mini recallsWhat an NHTSA investigation is
NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) looks into possible safety defects in vehicles and equipment, often after owner complaints. An investigation usually starts as a Preliminary Evaluation, or as a Recall Query when it concerns whether an existing recall covers the right vehicles or fixes the problem, and ODI can upgrade it to a more detailed Engineering Analysis. A Defect Petition asks NHTSA to open an investigation, and Audit and Equipment Queries are administrative investigations into whether companies complied with federal vehicle safety requirements, such as reporting, recall and certification rules.
An open investigation is not a finding that a safety defect exists, and NHTSA can close one without a recall.
To see whether a specific vehicle has an open recall, enter its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
Mini VIN check: decode a VIN to see its year, make and model.
Sources
NHTSA's investigation record for AQ15-003
Investigation details come from NHTSA's investigations file, which try.vin imports once a day. The investigation types are described from the U.S. Department of Transportation Inspector General's May 2023 report on NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation, NHTSA's petition rules (49 CFR Parts 552 and 557) and NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation procedures. How try.vin reads NHTSA investigations.